The advent of widespread computer networks such as the Internet and the connectivity they provide has facilitated and enhanced the marketing of many types of products and services. For example, online Internet auction services now give buyers from all over the country and the world the opportunity to bid on a wide variety of goods and services. Products and services that consumers could previously find only by scanning newspaper classified ads or going to auctions or yard sales can now be located almost instantly by logging into an online auction or listing system via the Internet and conducting electronic searches. Many newspapers and other services post classified ads online so they can be efficiently searched and responded to by any Internet computer user anywhere. Business-to-business transactions have similarly been significantly enhanced by the use of the Internet and other computer networks.
Even though computer networks have fundamentally changed certain attributes of many commerce transactions, basic principles of economics still apply. For example, to keep customers happy, sellers of products and services generally need to ensure an adequate supply. Customers will be disappointed and go elsewhere if the seller cannot readily supply the particular product or service the buyer wishes to buy. Similarly, to minimize inventory expense, spoilage and devaluation, the seller generally wants to avoid keeping a large volume of unsold products or services in inventory. Also, a seller can generally charge more for products and services that are in high demand relative to their supply, and typically must charge less for products and services the supply for which greatly exceeds demand. It is therefore important for sellers and buyers on and off the Internet to get an idea of the supply of products or services relative to demand.
“Scarcity” captures the concept of insufficient supply of a product or service to meet demand. If a product or service is scarce, the demand exceeds supply and a seller may be able to command a higher price or receive other benefits. A product or service that is not scarce has sufficient supply relative to demand—sometimes requiring the seller to lower the price or make other adjustments. A seller may be willing to pay more to obtain a scarce product or service, and may be willing to hold more scarce products and services in inventory for longer periods of time—waiting for customers who will offer the right price.
Even though scarcity is generally an important factor in determining basic issues concerning sale and procurement, it is generally difficult to accurately and efficiently measure scarcity of particular products or services. Sometimes, a seller or buyer can anticipate and capitalize on product scarcity. On the other hand, some times the first indication that a particular product is scarce is when the seller is sold out and cannot readily obtain any more and the buyer is disappointed. For example, supply and demand is not always defined by periodic sales volume. Sometimes, sales are as a result of available supply, while demand can be reflected in increased gross profit or even unfulfilled consumer purchase desire. Gross profit is typically not available on a mass basis. Despite these issues, it would be highly desirable to find an efficient and cost-effective way to automatically measure relative scarcity and thereby predict product scarcity through use of computers and computer networks.
The present invention solves this problem by leveraging the new electronic commerce infrastructures of computer networks such as the Internet and the wealth of transaction information that online Internet and other auction and listing services can provide, to efficiently assess and report on the scarcity of products and services.
In accordance with one aspect of a preferred illustrative exemplary embodiment of the invention, an online product or service listing facility provides an online searchable listing of products or services being offered. For example, in accordance with one exemplary illustrative embodiment, a web site lists classified ads for products and services and enables consumers to search the listings for products and/or services they are interested in. In the exemplary illustrative embodiment, the online listing service records information about searches that consumers have conducted, and compares the recorded information to available listings. The comparison may be geographical and/or market based. The result of the comparison is used to calculate a scarcity index for particular products or services—market-wise and/or in a particular geographical or other market area.
In accordance with another aspect of an exemplary illustrative embodiment, the scarcity index may be calculated using variables that represent the relationship between the products and/or services searched and the products and/or services listed online. For example, the scarcity index may be calculated as:Scarcity Index=(searches per listing/mean searches per listing)*100.
In this illustrative non-limiting embodiment, calculating the mean searches per listing by market provides a “normalized” meaning to the scarcity index. This allows the resulting values to have the same meaning for different markets. Moreover, the preferred exemplary arrangement may calculate different scarcity indices for different geographical markets (e.g., particular countries, particular cities, etc.)—allowing for comparison of scarcity of a product and/or service between different geographical or other markets.
In accordance with yet another aspect of a preferred exemplary embodiment, the following information is used to generate scarcity information:                periodic (e.g., monthly) searches for each product and/or service (by market);        periodic (e.g., monthly) inventory for each product and/or service (by market);        the ratio of searches to inventory (by market);        average searches (by market);        average inventory (by market); and        the ratio of average searches to average inventory (by market).        
In accordance with yet another non-limiting aspect of a preferred illustrative exemplary embodiment, the monthly inventory calculation may be derived from a short (e.g., one-day) snapshot of the inventory database (i.e., a relatively static representation of product and/or service inventory).
In one illustrative exemplary embodiment, scarcity reports may be delivered as paper printouts, via data display on an online real time basis, via email, or by other means.
In accordance with a further aspect, these scarcity reports may be provided to market participants who are not necessarily within the same precise channel of commerce that the online listing service serves. For example, an online listing service that primarily serves private buyers and sellers may provide scarcity information to professional dealers, or vice versa.
In accordance with yet another exemplary aspect, scarcity may be reported in a variety of different formats such as for example:                information sorted by scarcity index;        information sorted by particular products and/or services with any desired amount of detail;        other.        
In accordance with yet another aspect, a scarcity report may include the following data for each product and/or service:                detailed product identification,        total searches (in the selected market),        total listings (in the selected market);        searches per listing (in the selected market),        scarcity (in the selected market),        national scarcity index,        comparison with the scarcity in the selected market to the national scarcity,        other information.        
In accordance with yet another aspect, the preferred illustrative exemplary embodiment improves accuracy by using empirical analysis to further process (e.g., weight) raw scarcity index values for selected items or categories to take certain human psychology factors into account. For example, many of us will occasionally spend time searching for products and services we do not actually intend to purchase. As one example, people will sometimes search for “high ticket” items (e.g., a 1965 Mustang Convertible automobile, an expensive camera, a private jet, a high-priced designer dress, a beach house in the Bahamas, etc.) simply out of curiosity. If there are a significant number of such searches, raw scarcity indices can become skewed because such searches provide a false indication of consumer demand. The application of an additional, empirical weighting process to adjust the raw scarcity index improves accuracy by taking such psychological factors into account.
The techniques, systems and methods provided in accordance with the present invention are useful in a variety of different contexts for a variety of different products or services. One particularly advantageous but non-limiting use is in connection with the sale of new and used automobiles involving a web-based online regional or nationwide automobile listing service that lists used and/or new automobiles for sale to consumers. In this non-limiting arrangement, the automobile listing service collects vehicle supply information for particular vehicles by make/model/year, based on the number of ads that are listed with the listing service, and collects consumer interest information based on the online searches conducted by consumers who make use of the vehicle listing service to locate vehicles. In this non-limiting illustrative arrangement, the scarcity reporting may be delivered to a different marketing channel than the one that searches the listings. For example, the listing may typically be searched by consumers looking to purchase a new or used vehicle, and the scarcity index report may be delivered to dealers of new and used automobiles who would like to know the scarcity of used and/or new vehicles to assist them in making pricing, inventory and other decisions.
While one illustrative application of the present invention provides particular advantages and benefits in the new and/or used vehicle marketing area, the present invention is not limited to those particular products but may be useful, advantageous and applicable in a variety of other product and/or service areas including, for example:                new and/or used home sales,        apartments, houses and condominiums for rent,        new and/or used boats, airplanes, motorcycles, and other types of vehicles for sale or lease,        employment opportunities,        travel accommodations,        rare and/or comic books,        stamps and coins,        collectibles of any sort,        home entertainment equipment,        exercise equipment,        construction equipment,        business fixtures,        leases (residential and/or business),        consulting services,        any product or service that can be bought, sold or leased.        